Top Spin

I'll watch a documentary on almost anything. Case in point, I just watched one on ping pong. And loved it.

It's no secret I really dug Spellbound back in 2002. It's an Oscar nominated doc about the national spelling bee. Riveting stuff. Well, Top Spin is like Spellbound but for table tennis players trying to make it to the Olympics in London in 2012. Kids who are 15 years old just kicking major ass.

Top Spin is really well done. Doesn't need a big budget. It just follows some students, tells their stories, and puts it all together in a quick narrative with a well-defined arc. Simple and effective.

The kids who are profiled are paragons of grit, as Angela Duckworth would say. It's true. These kids are the embodiment of steely grit and determination. I'd be super proud of them if I were their parents.

This is only 80 minutes. Stream it on Netflix. You'll learn about something you never knew about before....unless you happen to really, really be into ping pong.

Pumping Iron

I'm lifting shoulders with Pickle* on Sunday. I had to get psyched up so I watched Pumping Iron again.

Okay, that's not really why I watched it again. But whatever. It was good to revisit. I'm gonna watch Generation Iron for a second time soon, too.

It's a classic. Just like Ahnold.

The Tritonian Ring

I just finished this fantasy novel by L. Sprague de Camp, famous for contributing to the Conan mythos post-R.E.H. I picked it up from a local store because of the author the the cool Frazetta cover art.

The book was so-so. I can't help but compare it to Robert E. Howard, as the tale has many resemblances to a typical Conan yarn. But de Camp just doesn't flow or doesn't paint quite the same vivid pictures in your mind.

Having said that, it was still a good read. I definitely imagined a myriad strange the wonderful beasts and epic landscapes and cityscapes as I made my way through the book.

If you're not super picky about your sword and sorcery tales...fuck it, give it a read. It's pretty good.

ROAD

Wow. That was heavy. That was really freakin' good.

Road is a documentary about the Dunlop family of motorcycle road racers. Two generations of Irish brothers constantly succeeding at the highest level of competition.

The sound design in this movie is particularly good. The editing is great. And the overall story arc is wonderful. The Directors really did a fantastic job of pulling this all together. It's not a high budget film, but it didn't need to be. The story-telling is just so spot-on. It's a great achievement. Terrific sporting documentary.

And it's a tear-jerker. Yup.

Highly recommended.

The Real Miyagi

I just watched a documentary that sprang up on my Netflix feed. It's about the sensei who inspired the character, Mr. Miyagi, in the Karate Kid. But that's only one aspect of Demura sensei's story.

The flick is about 80 minutes long or so. There're interviews with the likes of Dolph Lundgren, Steven Segall, and Michael Jai White. And of course quite a bit from Pat Morita, the Oscar nominated actor who played Mr. Miyagi in three films.

I really dug the story. Definitely parallels Jackie Chan's bio. Coming from poverty in Asia. Making it to America to work on films / entertainment. And really bringing martial arts to a much broader audience in the US.

Fumio Demura seems like a really freakin cool dude. Huge heart. Incredibly talented. Movie even brought a wee tear to my eye at times.

It's pretty low budget, though. Written, Edited and Directed by one guy. It's a shoestring budget, but the story-telling is pretty good. It could have been slicker, but the meat is there. I found it worthwhile, but if you don't care for martial arts then you can skip it.

Swedish Death Metal

It's been years since I first read this book. I'm on a music bio kick, and since I have so many good ones it's easy to go back and reread some of them when there's nothing new on deck.

I remember thinking this book wasn't that great the first time around. My initial reaction was that it was more of a list of events, rather than a story. But upon a second reading I've definitely changed my mind. While I don't think it's as deftly woven together as Choosing Death, I'm rescinding my first judgement. I really liked it.

Swedish Death Metal is an authoritative retrospective of the early years of the movement. The book starts pre-death metal and goes up until the explosion and peak in the early 90's. Ekeroth sticks a fork in it around 94 or so. That's essentially food for another book, should someone choose to take it on. But this tome is about those early years, one could argue the classic years. 

So yeah, if you like death metal then by default you've gotta like Swedish death metal, therefore you should buy this book! It's only logical.

This occupies a well-deserved space on your shelf next to Choosing Death and Lords of Chaos.

the Walking Dead: Volume 25 No Turning Back

I forgot how dramatic the last issue was. This picks up where it left off...so it opens on a major bummer.

As always, there's a lot of ups and downs, but it was kind of uplifting in the long-run. I'm stoked to see what happens next. Always am.

Haven't watched the last couple seasons of the TV show. But the comic is still alive and kicking.

A Story Worth Living

A story worth living? Not this fucking story!

Worst.
Movie.
Ever.

A dozen of us went out to see this movie. We were all duped. And we all feel like vomiting right now. Most reacted with, "we need to go to a strip club right now!" We have to wash off the filth of the last 90 minutes in a cloud of glitter, perfume, cigarette smoke, and silicone. Watching that movie just makes you want to go out and do horrible things.

If you were writing your own story why the hell would it include the following; sitting around a campfire and talking to your friends about "love," talking with dudes about your favorite scene in Les Mis, pulling out a copy of the Chronicles of Narnia and reading a lame passage to your friends, and worst of all....taking 8 days to ride a measly 1000 miles?! Really? All you could muster on 75% blacktop was a shitty 125 miles a day? WTF. What kind of lame ass story is this?

Oh yeah, the kind of lame ass story where Jesus and the bible pop up every 10 minutes. The kind of shitty ass story where everything in the world is really just a metaphor for the bible. Star Wars? The bible. LOTR? The bible. Fuck off.

These guys were such pussies it just drove you to the brink of violence. Honestly.

I swear I thought we were watching Brokeback Mountain 2.

This movie gives motorcycle movies a bad name. There wasn't one swastika, rape, orgy, shooting, or drug fueled violent act the whole time. What is the world coming to, people?

I left before the movie was done. But if I had been there alone I would have walked out after 10 minutes. Seriously. Fuck this movie.

The Complete Chronicles of Conan

Let's not beat around the bush: This is the best book ever.

If I could only save one book from my library this would be it. If I were stuck on a dessert island with only one book this would be it. Etc etc etc.

Just shy of 1000 pages, it took my time getting through all of Howard's tales. I sipped at it like a fine wine. I had to savor the greatness within because I knew once I had read it, there would be no more original Robert E. Howard Conan stories for me to devour. Robert committed suicide at the tender age of 30, and this is all he left us.

I'm still collecting the old paperbacks w/ Frazetta covers. I'll re-read the classic yarns within. But there's nothing new to discover now. Just the new fangled, derivative tales spun by Howard fanboys like L. Sprague De Camp. Better than nothing, I suppose.

Conan is my favorite literary character and Howard's tales truly transport me to a time since forgotten by mankind. All hail Conan...Amra...King of Aquilonia...

R.I.P. Robert E. Howard. May Mitra have mercy on his soul, for we know Crom won't.

Ogilvy on Advertising

This was a no-brainer. Ogilvy is a giant in the industry so I decided to absorb some of his sage wisdom. True, this book is dated, hell, it was pretty much written pre-internet...but some of the theories should transcend time and space.

I found myself taking pictures of some of the passages and emailing them to myself at work to share w/ co-workers. Definitely some gems in here and it's worth a read if advertising is your thing, or even PART of your thing...

I liked his writing style. Very forthright. Has a good personality.